Huntsville gazette., 1887-08-06
FREAKS OF MEMORY.
The Inexplicable Faculty of Recol-
lection.
Mysteries Which Can Not BE Explained
Causes That Produced Singular Results
Instances of Forgetfulness and
Sudden Recoveries.

There is no faculty so inexplicable as
memory. 1t is not merely that its
powers vary so much in different indi-
viduals as that every one has found his
or her own liable to the most unac-
countable changes. Why vivid i'm
pressions should seem to become en-
tirely obliterated, and then Suddenly
spring to light without the slightest
effort of our own is a mystery which is
not easily explained. Many have ex-
perienced this in trying to recall a
name, a tune, or a quotation, perhaps,
and then have it present itself unbid-
den when considerable time has elapsed
and the thoughts are on another subject,
and also many must know the uneasy
feeling with which one will search and
search for missing article, and the re-
lief when, in some mysterious way, the
knowledge of where it is flashes across
the mind and the article is found. A
retentive memory is considered Of such
Importance that it is the first object
in education. And so essential did the
ancients regard it for any work of
imagination that they described the
muses. as daughters Of memory"
There are many examples of this
great power in men of high abilities.
Themistocles, we are told, could call
by name every citizen of Athens, and
the number was twenty thousand.
Cyrus knew the name of every soldier
in his army. Hortencius had so great
a memory that he recollected not only
every word he himself had meditated,
but every sentence of his adversary's
Grafton, even to the titles and docu-
ments brought forward to support
case against him.
1t is not at all strange to find mem
ory retentive on some subjects and ex-
tremely defective on others. A lady of
my acquaintance could tell the number
of stairs contained in each flight in the
houses where she had lived, and it
seemed almost impossible for her to
retain for any length of time remem-
brance Of things more important. Miss
Addison, daughter of the celebrated
Addison, seemed to inherit her fathers
memory without his sound power of
understanding. She could repeat any
part of her fathers works, in fact, the
whole of many, but could not speak or
write an intelligent sentence OF her
own. She was a perfect imbecile. The
power Of calculation entirely from
memory is surprising. The famous
mathematician Wallis could extract the
cube root from sum of thirty figures
in bed and in the dark. 1t is said
George III. never forgot face once
seen or a name he had once heard.
Carolan had quick and retentive
memory. On one occasion he met a
celebrated musician at the house OF an
Irish nobleman and urged him to a
trial of musical skill. The musician
played the fifth concerto of Viraldi on
his violin. Carolan had never heard it
and listened with deep attention, and
when it was finished took his harp and
PLAYED the same concerto from begin
ming to end, not missing note.
Cases of forgetfulnees on matters of
interest are on record. When DR..
Priestley was preparing his work enti-
tied Harmony of the Gospels" he had
taken great pains to inform himself on
a subject which had been under dis
cussion relating to the Jewish pass
over He wrote out the result of his
researches and laid the paper away.
His attention and time being taken
with something else, some little time
elapsed before the subject occurred to
his mind again. Then the same time
and pains were given the subject that
had been given the subject before. and
they were again put upon paper and
laid aside. So completely had he for
gotten he had copied the same para
graphs and reflections before that it
was only when he found the papers on
which he had transcribed them that it
was called to his recollection. Many